In a news conference on Monday, Dr Dave Rosser said the schoolgirl was in the operating theatre for five hours, longer than predicted, but that everything had gone "very well" with the operation.

Malala Yousafza has been receiving treatment at Birmingham's Queen Elizabeth Hospital since she was transferred there after being shot in Pakistanby the Taliban in October last year for promoting women's rights.

Dr Rosser said: "She went back to the intensive care unit that evening, primarily as a precautionary measure rather than because of any major concerns and she's now back on one of the wards in the hospital and doing very well."

He added that she was looking forward to resuming her work furthering her cause of education for women.

"Most of us would still be feeling sorry for ourselves 24 hours after an operation like that, not talking about helping other people," he said